NAPOLEON BONAPARTE.
[Sidenote: Napoleon Bonaparte.]
Mr. Alison has found it necessary to devote ten large octavo volumes
to the life and times of Napoleon Bonaparte; nor can the varied events
connected with his brilliant career be satisfactorily described in
fewer volumes. The limits of this work will not, however, permit a
notice extending beyond a few pages. Who, then, even among those for
whom this History is especially designed, will be satisfied with our
brief review? But only a brief allusion to very great events can be
made; for it is preposterous to attempt to condense the life of the
greatest actor on the stage of real tragedy in a single chapter. And
yet there is a uniformity in nearly all of the scenes in which he
appears. The history of war is ever the same--the exhibition of
excited passions, of restless ambition, of dazzling spectacles of
strife, pomp, and glory. Pillage, oppression, misery, crime, despair,
ruin, and death--such are the evils necessarily attendant on all war,
even glorious war, when men fight for their homes, for their altars,
or for great ideas. The details of war are exciting, but painful. We
are most powerfully reminded of our degeneracy, of our misfortunes, of
the Great Destroyer. The "Angel Death" appears before us, in grim
terrors, punishing men for crimes. But while war is so awful, and
attended with all the evils of which we can conceive, or which it is
the doom of man to suffer, yet warriors are not necessarily the
enemies of mankind. They are the instruments of the Almighty to
scourge a wicked world, or to bring, out of disaster and suffering,
great and permanent blessings to the human race.
[Sidenote: Character of Napoleon.]
Napoleon is contemplated by historians in both those lights. The
English look upon him, generally, as an ambitious usurper, who aimed
to erect a universal empire upon universal ruin; as an Alexander, a
Cæsar, an Attila, a Charles XII. The French nation regard him almost
as a deity, as a messenger of good, as a great conqueror, who fought
for light and freedom. But he was not the worst or the best of
warriors. His extraordinary and astonishing energies were called into
exercise by the circumstances of the times; and he, taking advantage
of both ideas and circumstances, attempted to rear a majestic throne,
and advance the glory of the country, of which he made himself the
absolute ruler. His nature was not sanguinary, or cruel, or
revengeful; but few conquerors have ever committed crimes on a greater
scale, or were more unscrupulous in using any means, lawful or
unlawful, to accomplish a great end. Napoleon had enlightened views,
and wished to advance the real interests of the French nation, but not
until he had climbed to the summit of power, and realized all those
dreams which a most inordinate ambition had excited. He doubtless
rescued his country from the dangers which menaced it from foreign
invasion; but his conquests and his designs led to still greater
combinations, and these, demanding for their support the united
energies of Christendom, deluged the world with blood. Napoleon, to an
extraordinary degree, realized the objects to which he had aspired;
but these were not long enjoyed, and he was hurled from his throne of
grandeur and of victory, to impress the world, which he mocked and
despised, of the vanity of military glory and the dear-earned trophies
of the battle field. No man was ever permitted by Providence to
accomplish so much mischief, and yet never mortal had more admirers
than he, and never were the opinions of the wise more divided in
regard to the effects of his wars. A painful and sad recital may be
made of the desolations he caused, so that Alaric, in comparison,
would seem but a common robber, while, at the same time, a glorious
eulogium might be justly made of the many benefits he conferred upon
mankind. The good and the evil are ever combined in all great
characters; but the evil and the good are combined in him in such vast
proportions, that he seems either a monster of iniquity, or an object
of endless admiration. There are some characters which the eye of the
mind can survey at once, as the natural eye can take in the
proportions of a small but singular edifice; but Napoleon was a genius
and an actor of such wonderful greatness and majesty, both from his
natural talents and the great events which he controlled, that he
rises before us, when we contemplate him, like some vast pyramid or
some majestic cathedral, which the eye can survey only in details. Our
age is not sufficiently removed from the times in which he lived, we
are too near the object of vision, to pronounce upon the general
effect of his character, and only prejudiced or vain persons would
attempt to do so. He must remain for generations simply an object of
awe, of wonder, of dread, of admiration, of hatred, or of love.
Nor can we condense the events of his life any more than we can
analyze his character and motives. We do not yet know their relative
importance. In the progress of ages, some of them will stand out more
beautiful and more remarkable, and some will be entirely lost sight
of. Thousands of books will waste away as completely as if they were
burned, like the Alexandrian library; and a future age may know no
more of the details of Napoleon's battles than we now know of
Alexander's marches. But the main facts can never be lost; something
will remain, enough to "point a moral or adorn a tale." The object of
all historical knowledge is moral wisdom, and this we may learn from
narratives as brief as the stories of Joseph and Daniel, or the
accounts which Tacitus has left us of the lives of the Roman tyrants.
[Sidenote: Early Days of Napoleon.]
Napoleon Bonaparte was born in Corsica, the 15th of August, 1769, of
respectable parents, and was early sent to a royal military school at
Brienne. He was not distinguished for any attainments, except in
mathematics; he was studious, reserved, and cold; he also exhibited an
inflexible will, the great distinguishing quality of his mind. At the
age of fourteen, in view of superior attainments, he was removed to
the military school at Paris, and, at the age of seventeen, received
his commission as second lieutenant in a regiment of artillery.
[Sidenote: Early Services to the Republic.]
When the Revolution broke out, Toulon, one of the arsenals of France,
took a more decided part in favor of the king and the constitution
than either Marseilles or Lyons, and invited the support of the
English and Spanish squadrons. The Committee of Public Safety
resolved to subdue the city; and Bonaparte, even at that time a
brigadier-general, with the command of the artillery at the siege,
recommended a course which led to the capture of that important place.
For his distinguished services and talents, he was appointed second in
command, by the National Convention, when that body was threatened and
overawed by the rebellious National Guard. He saved the state and
defended the constitutional authorities, for which service he was
appointed second in command of the great army of the interior, and
then general-in-chief in the place of Barras, who found his new office
as director incompatible with the duties of a general.
The other directors who now enjoyed the supreme command were Reubel,
Laréveillère-Lépeaux, Le Tourneur, and Carnot. Sièyes, a man of great
genius, had been elected, but had declined. Among these five men,
Carnot was the only man of genius, and it was through his exertions
that France, under the Committee of Public Safety, had been saved from
the torrent of invasion. But Barras, though inferior to Carnot in
genius, had even greater influence, and it was through his favor that
Bonaparte received his appointments. That a young man of twenty-five
should have the command of the army of the interior, is as remarkable
as the victories which subsequently showed that his elevation was not
the work of chance, but of a providential hand.
The acknowledged favorite of Barras was a young widow, by birth a
Creole of the West Indies, whose husband, a general in the army of the
Rhine, had been guillotined during the Reign of Terror. Her name was
Josephine Beauharnois; and, as a woman of sense, of warm affections,
and of rare accomplishments, she won the heart of Bonaparte, and was
married to him, March 9, 1796. Her dowry was the command of the army
of Italy, which, through her influence, the young general received.
Then commenced his brilliant military career. United with Josephine,
whom he loved, he rose in rank and power.
The army which Bonaparte commanded was composed of forty-two thousand
men, while the forces of the Italian states numbered one hundred and
sixty thousand, and could with ease be increased to three hundred
thousand. But Italian soldiers had never been able to contend with
either Austrian or French, and Bonaparte felt sure of victory. His
soldiers were young men, inured to danger and toil; and among his
officers were Berthier, Massena, Marmont, Augereau, Serrurier,
Joubert, Lannes, and Murat. They were not then all generals, but they
became afterwards marshals of France.
[Sidenote: The Italian Campaign.]
The campaign of 1796, in Italy, was successful beyond precedent in the
history of war; and the battles of Montenotte, Millesimo, and Dego,
the passage of the bridge of Lodi, the siege of Mantua, and the
victories at Castiglione, Caldiero, Arcola, Rivoli, and Mantua,
extended the fame of Bonaparte throughout the world. The Austrian
armies were every where defeated, and Italy was subjected to the rule
of the French. "With the French invasion commenced tyranny under the
name of liberty, rapine under the name of generosity, the stripping of
churches, the robbing of hospitals, the levelling of the palaces of
the great, and the destruction of the cottages of the poor; all that
military license has of most terrible, all that despotic authority has
of most oppressive."
While Bonaparte was subduing Italy, the French under Moreau were
contending, on the Rhine, with the Austrians under the Archduke
Charles. Several great battles were fought, and masterly retreats were
made, but without decisive results.
It is surprising that England, France, and the other contending
powers, were able at this time to commence the contest, much more so
to continue it for more than twenty years. The French Directory, on
its accession to power, found the finances in a state of inextricable
confusion. Assignats had fallen to almost nothing, and taxes were
collected with such difficulty, that there were arrears to the amount
of fifteen hundred millions of francs. The armies were destitute and
ill paid, the artillery without horses, and the infantry depressed by
suffering and defeat. In England, the government of Pitt was violently
assailed for carrying on a war against a country which sought simply
to revolutionize her own institutions, and which all the armies of
Europe had thus far failed to subdue. Mr. Fox, and others in the
opposition, urged the folly of continuing a contest which had already
added one hundred millions of pounds to the national debt, and at a
time when French armies were preparing to invade Italy; but Pitt
argued that the French must be nearly exhausted by their great
exertions, and would soon be unable to continue the warfare. The
nation, generally, took this latter view of the case, and parliament
voted immense supplies.
The year 1797 opened gloomily for England. The French had gained
immense successes. Bonaparte had subdued Italy, Hoche had suppressed
the rebellion in La Vendée, Austria was preparing to defend her last
barriers in the passes of the Alps, Holland was virtually incorporated
with Republican France, Spain had also joined its forces, and the
whole continent was arrayed against Great Britain. England had
interfered in a contest in which she was not concerned, and was forced
to reap the penalty. The funds fell from ninety-eight to fifty-one,
and petitions for a change of ministers were sent to the king from
almost every city of note in the kingdom. The Bank of England stopped
payment in specie, and the country was overburdened by taxation.
Nevertheless, parliament voted new supplies, and made immense
preparations, especially for the increase of the navy. One hundred and
twenty-four ships of the line, one hundred and eighty frigates, and
one hundred and eighty-four sloops, were put in commission, and sent
to the various quarters of the globe.
[Sidenote: Battle of St. Vincent.]
Soon after occurred the memorable mutiny in the English fleet, which
produced the utmost alarm; but it was finally suppressed by the
vigorous measures which the government adopted, and the happy union of
firmness and humanity, justice and concession which Mr. Pitt
exercised. The mutiny was entirely disconnected with France, and
resulted from the real grievances which existed in the navy;
grievances which, to the glory of Pitt, were candidly considered and
promptly redressed. The temporary disgrace which resulted to the navy
by this mutiny was soon, however, wiped away by the battle of Cape St.
Vincent, in which Admiral Jervis, seconded by Nelson and Collingwood,
with fifteen ships of the line and six frigates, defeated a Spanish
fleet of twenty-seven ships of the line and twelve frigates. This
important naval victory delivered England from all fears of invasion,
and inspired courage into the hearts of the nation, groaning under the
heavy taxes which the war increased. Before the season closed, the
Dutch fleet, of fifteen ships of the line and eleven frigates, was
defeated by an English one, under Admiral Duncan, consisting of
sixteen ships of the line and three frigates. The battles of
Camperdown and Cape St. Vincent, in which the genius of Duncan and
Nelson were signally exhibited, were among the most important fought
at sea during the war, and diffused unexampled joy throughout Great
Britain. The victors were all rewarded. Jervis became Earl St.
Vincent, Admiral Duncan became a viscount, and Commodore Nelson became
a baronet. Soon after the bonfires and illuminations for these
victories were ended, Mr. Burke died urging, as his end approached,
the ministry to persevere in the great struggle to which the nation
was committed.
[Sidenote: Conquest of Venice by Napoleon.]
While the English were victorious on the water, the French obtained
new triumphs on the land. In twenty days after the opening of the
campaign of 1797, Bonaparte had driven the Archduke Charles, with an
army equal to his own, over the Julian Alps, and occupied Carniola,
Carinthia, Trieste, Fiume, and the Italian Tyrol, while a force of
forty-five thousand men, flushed with victory, was on the northern
declivity of the Alps, within fifty leagues of Vienna. In the midst of
these successes, an insurrection broke out in the Venetian
territories; and, as Bonaparte was not supported, as he expected, by
the Armies of the Rhine, and partly in consequence of the jealousy of
the Directory, he resolved to forego all thoughts of dictating peace
under the walls of Vienna, and contented himself with making as
advantageous terms as possible with the Austrian government. Bonaparte
accomplished his object, and directed his attention to the subjugation
of Venice, no longer the "Queen of the Adriatic, throned on her
hundred isles," but degenerate, weakened, and divided. Bonaparte
acted, in his treaty with Austria, with great injustice to Venice, and
also encouraged the insurrection of the people in her territories. And
when the Venetian government attempted to suppress rebellion in its
own provinces, Bonaparte affected great indignation, and soon found
means to break off all negotiations. The Venetian senate made every
effort to avert the storm, but in vain. Bonaparte declared war against
Venice, and her fall soon after resulted. The French seized all the
treasure they could find, and obliged the ruined capital to furnish
heavy contributions, and surrender its choicest works of art. Soon
after, the youthful conqueror established himself in the beautiful
chateau of Montebello near Milan, and there dictated peace to the
assembled ambassadors of Germany, Rome, Genoa, Venice, Naples,
Piedmont, and the Swiss republic. The treaty of Campo Formio exhibited
both the strength and the perfidy of Bonaparte, especially in
reference to Venice, which was disgracefully despoiled to pay the
expenses of the Italian wars. Among other things, the splendid bronze
horses, which, for six hundred years, had stood over the portico of
the church of St. Mark, to commemorate the capture of Constantinople
by the Venetian crusaders, and which had originally been brought from
Corinth to Rome by ancient conquerors, were removed to Paris to
decorate the Tuileries.
Bonaparte's journey from Italy to Paris, after Venice, with its
beautiful provinces, was surrendered to Austria, was a triumphal
procession. The enthusiasm of the Parisians was boundless; the public
curiosity to see him indescribable. But he lived in a quiet manner,
and assumed the dress of a member of the Institute, being lately
elected. Great _fêtes_ were given to his honor, and his victories were
magnified.
[Sidenote: Invasion of Egypt.]
But he was not content with repose or adulation. His ambitious soul
panted for new conquests, and he conceived the scheme of his Egyptian
invasion, veiled indeed from the eyes of the world by a pretended
attack on England herself. He was invested, with great pomp, by the
Directory, with the command of the army of England, but easily induced
the government to sanction the invasion of Egypt. It is not probable
that Bonaparte seriously contemplated the conquest of England, knowing
the difficulty of supporting and recruiting his army, even if he
succeeded in landing his forces. He probably designed to divert the
attention of the English from his projected enterprise.
When all was ready, Bonaparte (9th May) embarked at Toulon in a fleet
of thirteen ships of the line, fourteen frigates, seventy-two brigs,
and four hundred transports, containing thirty-six thousand soldiers
and ten thousand sailors. He was joined by reinforcements at Genoa,
Ajaccio, Civita Castellana, and on the 10th of June arrived at Malta,
which capitulated without firing a shot; proceeded on his voyage,
succeeded in escaping the squadron of Nelson, and on the 1st of July
reached Alexandria. He was vigorously opposed by the Mamelukes, who
were the actual rulers of the country, but advanced in spite of them
to Cairo, and marched along the banks of the Nile. Near the Pyramids,
a great battle took place, and the Mamelukes were signally defeated,
and the fate of Egypt was sealed.
[Sidenote: Siege of Acre.]
But Nelson got intelligence of Bonaparte's movements, and resolved to
"gain a peerage, or a grave in Westminster Abbey." Then succeeded the
battle of the Nile, and the victory of Nelson, one of the most
brilliant but bloody actions in the history of naval warfare. Nelson
was wounded, but gained a peerage and magnificent presents. The battle
was a mortal stroke to the French army, and made the conquest of Egypt
useless. Bonaparte found his army exiled, and himself destined to
hopeless struggles with Oriental powers. But he made gigantic efforts,
in order to secure the means of support, to prosecute scientific
researches, and to complete the conquest of the country. He crossed
the desert which separates Africa from Asia, with his army, which did
not exceed sixteen thousand men, invaded Syria, stormed Jaffa,
massacred its garrison, since he could not afford to support the
prisoners,--a most barbarous measure, and not to be excused even in
view of the policy of the act,--and then advanced to Acre. Its
memorable siege in the time of the Crusades should have deterred
Bonaparte from the attempt to subdue it with his little army in the
midst of a hostile population. But he made the attack. The fortress,
succored by Sir Sidney Smith, successfully resisted the impetuosity of
his troops, and they were compelled to retire with the loss of three
thousand men. His discomfited army retreated to Egypt, and suffered
all the accumulated miseries which fatigue, heat, thirst, plague, and
famine could inflict. He, however, amidst all these calamities, added
to discontents among the troops, won the great battle of Aboukir, and
immediately after, leaving the army under the command of Kleber,
returned to Alexandria, and secretly set sail for France, accompanied
by Berthier, Lannes, Murat, Marmont, and other generals. He succeeded
in escaping the English cruisers, and, on the 8th of October, 1799,
landed in France.
Bonaparte, had he not been arrested at Acre by Sir Sidney Smith,
probably would have conquered Asia Minor, and established an Oriental
empire; but such a conquest would not have been permanent. More
brilliant victories were in reserve for him than conquering troops of
half-civilized Turks and Arabs.
During the absence of Bonaparte in Egypt, the French Directory became
unpopular, and the national finances more embarrassed than ever. But
Switzerland was invaded and conquered--an outrage which showed the
ambitious designs of the government more than any previous attack
which it had made on the liberties of Europe. The Papal States were
next seized, the venerable pontiff was subjected to cruel indignities,
and the treasures and monuments of Rome were again despoiled. "The
Vatican was stripped to its naked walls, and the immortal frescoes of
Raphael and Michael Angelo alone remained in solitary beauty amidst
the general desolation." The King of Sardinia was driven from his
dominions, and Naples yielded to the tricolored flag. Immense military
contributions were levied in all these unfortunate states, and all
that was beautiful in art was transported to Paris.
[Sidenote: Reverses of the French.]
In the mean time, the spirits of the English were revived by the
victories of Nelson, and greater preparations than ever were made to
resist the general, who now plainly aimed at the conquest of Europe.
England, Austria, and Russia combined against France and her armies
met with reverses in Italy and on the Rhine. Suwarrow, with a large
army of Russians united with Austrians gained considerable success,
and General Moreau was obliged to retreat before him. Serrurier
surrendered with seven thousand men, and Suwarrow entered Milan in
triumph, with sixty thousand troops. Turin shared the fate of Milan,
and Piedmont and Lombardy were overrun by the allies. The republicans
were expelled from Naples. Mantua fell, and Suwarrow marched with his
conquering legions into Switzerland.
[Sidenote: Napoleon First Consul.]
These disasters happened while Bonaparte was in Egypt; and his return
to France was hailed with universal joy. His victories in Egypt had
prepared the way for a most enthusiastic reception, and for his
assumption of the sovereign power. All the generals then in Paris paid
their court to him, and his saloon, in his humble dwelling in the Rue
Chantereine, resembled the court of a monarch. Lannes, Murat,
Berthier, Jourdan, Augereau, Macdonald, Bournonville, Leclerc,
Lefebvre, and Marmont, afterwards so illustrious as the marshals of
the emperor, offered him the military dictatorship, while Sièyes,
Talleyrand, and Régnier, the great civil leaders, concurred to place
him at the head of affairs. He himself withdrew from the gaze of the
people, affected great simplicity, and associated chiefly with men
distinguished for literary and scientific attainments. But he secretly
intrigued with Sièyes and with his generals. Three of the Directory
sent in their resignations, and Napoleon assumed the reins of
government under the title of _First Consul_, and was associated with
Sièyes and Roger Ducos. The legislative branches of the government
resisted, but the Council of Five Hundred was powerless before the
bayonets of the military. A new revolution was effected, and despotic
power in the hands of a military chieftain commenced. He, however,
signalized himself by the clemency he showed in the moment of victory,
and the principles of humanity, even in the government of a military
despot, triumphed over the principles of cruelty. Bonaparte chose able
men to assist him in the government. Talleyrand was made minister of
foreign affairs. Fouché retained his portfolio of police, and the
celebrated La Place was made minister of the interior. On the 24th of
December, 1799, the new constitution was proclaimed; and, shortly
after, Sièyes and Roger Ducos withdrew from the consulate, and gave
place to Cambacères and Lebrun, who were in the interests of Napoleon.
The first step of the first consul was to offer peace to Great
Britain; and he wrote a letter to the king, couched in his peculiar
style of mock philanthropy and benevolence, in which he spoke of peace
as the first necessity and truest glory of nations! Lord Grenville,
minister of foreign affairs, replied in a long letter, in which he
laid upon France the blame of the war, in consequence of her
revolutionary principles and aggressive spirit, and refused to make
peace while the causes of difficulty remained; in other words, until
the Bourbon dynasty was restored. The Commons supported the government
by a large majority, and all parties prepared for a still more
desperate conflict. Napoleon was obliged to fight, and probably
desired to fight, feeling that his power and the greatness of his
country would depend upon the victories he might gain; that so long as
the _éclat_ of his government continued, his government would be
strong. Mr. Pitt was probably right in his opinion that no peace could
be lasting with a revolutionary power, and that every successive peace
would only pave the way for fresh aggressions. Bonaparte could only
fulfil what he called his destiny, by continual agitation; and this
was well understood by himself and by his enemies. The contest had
become one of life and death; and both parties resolved that no peace
should be made until one or the other was effectually conquered The
land forces of Great Britain, at the commencement of the year 1800,
amounted to one hundred and sixty-eight thousand men, exclusive of
eighty thousand militia, while one hundred and twenty thousand seamen
and marines were voted. The ships in commission were no less than five
hundred, including one hundred and twenty-four of the line. The
charter of the Bank of England was renewed, and the union with Ireland
effected. The various German states made still greater exertions, and
agreed to raise a contingent force of three hundred thousand men. They
were greatly assisted in this measure by subsidies from Great Britain.
Austria, alone, had in the field at this time a force of two hundred
thousand men, half of whom belonged to the army of Italy under Melas.
[Sidenote: Immense Military Preparations.]
To make head against the united forces of England and Austria, with a
defeated army, an exhausted treasury, and a disunited people, was the
difficult task of Bonaparte. His first object was to improve the
finances; his second, to tranquillize La Vendée; his third, to detach
Russia from the allies; his fourth, to raise armies equal to the
crisis; and all these measures he rapidly accomplished. One hundred
and twenty thousand men were raised by conscription, without any
exemption from either rank or fortune, and two hundred and fifty
thousand men were ready to commence hostilities. The first consul
suppressed the liberty of the press, fixed his residence in the
Tuileries, and established the usages and ceremonial of a court. He
revoked the sentence of banishment on illustrious individuals,
established a secret police, and constructed the gallery of the
Louvre.
Hostilities commenced in Germany, and General Moreau was successful
over General Kray at the battles of Engen, Moeskirch, and Biberach.
General Massena fought with great courage in the Maritime Alps, but
was obliged to retreat before superior forces, and shut himself up in
Genoa, which endured a dreadful siege, but was finally compelled to
surrender. The victor, Melas, then set out to meet Bonaparte himself,
who was invading Italy, and had just effected his wonderful passage
over the Alps by the Great St. Bernard, one of the most wonderful
feats in the annals of war; for his artillery and baggage had to be
transported over one of the highest and most difficult passes of the
Alps. The passes of the St. Gothard and Mount Cenis were also effected
by the wings of the army. The first action was at Montebello, which
ended in favor of the French; and this was soon followed by a decisive
and brilliant victory at Marengo, (June 14,) one of the most
obstinately contested during the war, and which was attended with
greater results than perhaps any battle that had yet occurred in
modern warfare. Moreau also gained a great victory over the Austrians
at Hohenlinden, and Macdonald performed great exploits amid the
mountains of the Italian Tyrol. The treaty of Lunéville, (February 9,
1801,) in consequence of the victorious career of Bonaparte, ceded to
France the possession of Belgium, and the whole left bank of the
Rhine. Lombardy was erected into an independent state, Venice was
restored to Austria, and the independence of the Batavian, Helvetic,
Cisalpine, and Ligurian republics was guaranteed. This peace excited
unbounded joy at Paris, and was the first considerable pause in the
continental strife.
[Sidenote: The Reforms of Napoleon.]
Napoleon returned to his capital to reconstruct society, which was
entirely disorganized. It was his object to restore the institutions
of religion, law, commerce, and education. He did not attempt to give
constitutional freedom. This was impracticable; but he did desire to
bring order out of confusion. One night, going to the theatre, he
narrowly escaped death by the explosion of an "infernal machine." He
attributed the design of assassination to the Jacobins, and forthwith
transported one hundred and thirty of them, more as a statesman than
as a judge. He was determined to break up that obnoxious party, and
the design against his life furnished the pretence. Shortly after, he
instituted the Legion of Honor, an order of merit which was designed
to restore gradually the gradation in the ranks of society. He was
violently opposed, but he carried his measures through the Council of
State; and this institution, which at length numbered two thousand
persons, civil and military, became both popular and useful. He then
restored the external institution of religion, and ten archbishops and
fifty bishops administered the affairs of the Gallican Church. The
restoration of the Sunday, with its customary observances, was hailed
by the peasantry with undisguised delight, and was a pleasing sight to
the nations of Europe. He then contemplated the complete restoration
of all the unalienated national property to the original proprietors,
but was forced to abandon the design. A general amnesty, was also
proclaimed to emigrants, by which one hundred thousand people
returned, not to enjoy their possessions, but to recover a part of
them, and breathe the air of their native land. At last, he resolved
to make himself first consul for life, and seat his family on a
monarchical throne. He was opposed by the Council of State; but he
appealed to the people, and three million three hundred and
sixty-eight thousand two hundred and nine, out of three million five
hundred and fifty-seven thousand eight hundred and eighty-five
electors, voted for his elevation.
[Sidenote: The Code Napoléon.]
The "_Code Napoléon_" then occupied his attention, indisputably the
greatest monument of his reign, and the most beneficial event of his
age. All classes and parties have praised the wisdom of this great
compilation, which produced more salutary changes than had been
effected by all the early revolutionists. Amid these great
undertakings of the consul, the internal prosperity of France was
constantly increasing, and education, art, and science received an
immense impulse. Every thing seemed to smile upon Bonaparte, and all
appeared reconciled to the great power which he exercised.
But there were some of his generals who were attached to republican
principles, and viewed with ill-suppressed jealousy the rapid strides
he was making to imperial power. Moreau, the victor at Hohenlinden,
was at the head of these, and, in conjunction with Fouché, who had
been turned out of his office on account of the immense power which it
gave him, formed a conspiracy of republicans and royalists to overturn
the consular throne. But Fouché revealed the plot to Bonaparte, who
restored him to power, and Generals Moreau and Pichegru, the Duke
d'Enghien, and other illustrious persons were arrested. The duke
himself was innocent of the conspiracy, but was sacrificed to the
jealousy of Bonaparte, who wished to remove from the eyes of the
people this illustrious scion of the Bourbon family, the only member
of it he feared. This act was one of the most cruel and unjustifiable,
and therefore, impolitic, which Bonaparte ever committed. "It was
worse than a crime," said Talleyrand; "it was a blunder." His murder
again lighted the flames of continental war, and from it may be dated
the commencement of that train of events which ultimately hurled
Napoleon from the imperial throne.
That possession was what his heart now coveted, and he therefore
seized what he desired, and what he had power to retain. On the 18th
of May, 1804, Napoleon was declared Emperor of the French, and an
overwhelming majority of the electoral votes of France confirmed him
in his usurpation of the throne of Hugh Capet.
His first step, as emperor, was the creation of eighteen marshals, all
memorable in the annals of military glory--Berthier, Murat, Moncey,
Jourdan, Massena, Augereau, Bernadotte, Soult, Brune, Lannes, Mortier,
Ney, Davoust, Bessières, Kellermann, Lefebvre, Pérignon, and
Serrurier. The individual lives of these military heroes cannot here
be alluded to.
Early in the year 1805, the great powers of England, Austria, and
Russia entered into a coalition to reduce France to its ancient
limits, and humble the despot who had usurped the throne. Enormous
preparations were made by all the belligerent states, and four hundred
thousand men were furnished by the allies for active service; a force
not, however, much larger than Napoleon raised to prosecute his scheme
of universal dominion.
[Sidenote: Meditated Invasion of England.]
Among other designs, he meditated the invasion of England itself, and
assembled for that purpose one of the most splendid armies which had
been collected since the days of the Roman legions. It amounted to one
hundred and fourteen thousand men, four hundred and thirty-two pieces
of cannon, and fourteen thousand six hundred and fifty-four horses.
Ample transports were provided to convey this immense army to the
shores of England. But the English government took corresponding means
of defence, having fathomed the designs of the enemy, who had
succeeded in securing the coöperation of Spain. This great design of
Napoleon was defeated by the vigilance of the English, and the number
of British ships which defended the coasts--the "wooden walls" which
preserved England from a most imminent and dreaded danger.
[Sidenote: Battle of Austerlitz.]
Frustrated in the attempt to invade Great Britain, Napoleon instantly
conceived the plan of the campaign of Austerlitz, and without delay
gave orders for the march of his different armies to the banks of the
Danube. The army of England on the shores of the Channel, the forces
in Holland, and the troops in Hanover were formed into seven corps,
under the command of as many marshals, comprising altogether one
hundred and ninety thousand men, while the troops of his allies in
Italy and Germany amounted to nearly seventy thousand more. Eighty
thousand new conscripts were also raised, and all of these were
designed for the approaching conflict with the Austrians.
But before the different armies could meet together in Germany, Nelson
had gained the great and ever-memorable victory of Trafalgar, (October
23,) on the coast of Spain, by which the naval power of France and
Spain was so crippled and weakened, that England remained, during the
continuance of the war, sovereign mistress of the ocean. Nothing could
exceed the transports of exultation which pervaded the British empire
on the news of this great naval victory--perhaps the greatest in the
annals of war. And all that national gratitude could prompt was done
in honor of Nelson. The remains of the fallen victor were buried in
St. Paul's Cathedral, over which a magnificent monument was erected.
His brother, who inherited his title, was made an earl, with a grant
of six thousand pounds a year, and an estate worth one hundred
thousand pounds. Admiral Collingwood, the second in command, was
raised to the peerage, with a grant of two thousand pounds yearly. But
the thoughts of the nation were directed to the departed hero, and
countless and weeping multitudes followed him to the grave; and his
memory has ever since been consecrated in the hearts of his
countrymen, who regard him, and with justice, as the greatest naval
commander whom any nation or age has produced.
Early in October, the forces of Napoleon were marshalled on the plains
of Germany, and the Austrians, under the Archduke Charles, acted on
the defensive. Napoleon advanced rapidly on Vienna, seized the bridge
which led from it to the northern provinces of the empire, passed
through the city, and established his head-quarters at Schoenbrunn. On
the 1st of December was fought the celebrated battle of Austerlitz,
the most glorious of all Napoleon's battles, and in which his military
genius shone with the greatest lustre, and which decided the campaign.
Negotiations with Austria, dictated by the irresistible power of the
French emperor, were soon concluded at Presburg, (27th December,) by
which that ancient state was completely humbled. The dethronement of
the King of Naples followed, and the power of Napoleon was
consolidated on the continent of Europe.
The defeat of Austerlitz was a great blow to the allied powers, and
the health and spirits of Pitt sunk under the disastrous intelligence.
A devouring fever seized his brain, and delirium quenched the fire of
his genius. He died on the 23d of January, 1806, at the age of
forty-seven, with the exclamation, "Alas, my country!" after having
nobly guided the British bark in the most stormy times his nation had
witnessed since the age of Cromwell. He was buried with great pomp in
Westminster Abbey, and died in debt, after having the control, for so
many years, of the treasury of England. Mr. Fox did not long survive
his more illustrious rival, but departed from the scene of conflict
and of glory the 13th of September.
[Sidenote: Battle of Jena.]
The humiliation of Prussia succeeded that of Austria. The battle of
Jena, the 14th of October, prostrated, in a single day, the strength
of the Prussian monarchy, and did what the united armies of Austria,
Russia, and France could not accomplish by the Seven Years' War.
Napoleon followed up his victories by bold and decisive measures,
invested Magdeburg, which was soon abandoned, entered Berlin in
triumph, and levied enormous contributions on the kingdom, to the
amount of one hundred and fifty-nine millions of francs. In less than
seven weeks, three hundred and fifty standards, four thousand pieces
of cannon, and eighty thousand prisoners were taken; while only
fifteen thousand, out of one hundred and twenty thousand men, were
able to follow the standards of the conquered king to the banks of the
Vistula. Alarm, as well as despondency, now seized all the nations of
Europe. All the coalitions which had been made to suppress a
revolutionary state had failed, and the proudest monarchs of
Christendom were suppliant at the feet of Napoleon.
The unfortunate Frederic William sued for peace; but such hard
conditions were imposed by the haughty conqueror at Berlin, that the
King of Prussia prepared for further resistance, especially in view of
the fact that the Russians were coming to his assistance At Berlin,
Napoleon issued his celebrated decrees against British commerce,
which, however, flourished in spite of them.
[Sidenote: Napoleon Aggrandizes France.]
Napoleon then advanced into Poland to meet the Russian armies, and at
Eylau, on the 8th of February, 1807, was fought a bloody battle, in
which fifty thousand men perished. It was indecisive, but had the
effect of checking the progress of the French armies. But Napoleon
ordered new conscriptions, and made unusual exertions, so that he soon
had two hundred and eighty thousand men between the Vistula and Memel.
New successes attended the French armies, which resulted in a peace
with Russia, at Tilsit, on the river Niemen, at which place Napoleon
had a personal interview with the Emperor Alexander and the King of
Prussia. By this treaty, (7th July,) Poland was erected into a
separate principality, and the general changes which Napoleon had made
in Europe were ratified by the two monarchs. Soon after, Napoleon,
having subdued resistance on the continent of Europe, returned to his
capital. He was now at the height of his fame and power, but on an
elevation so high that his head became giddy. Moreover, his elevation,
at the expense of Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, Prussia,
Saxony, and Russia, to say nothing of inferior powers, excited the
envy and the hatred of all over whom he had triumphed, and prepared
the way for new intrigues and coalitions.
Napoleon after the peace of Tilsit, devoted all his energies to the
preservation of his power and to the improvement of his country, and
expected of his numerous subjects the most implicit obedience to his
will. He looked upon himself as having received a commission from
Heaven to rule and to reign as absolute monarch of a vast empire, as a
being upon whom the fate of France depended. The watchwords "liberty,"
"equality," "fraternity," "the public welfare," were heard no more,
and gave place to others which equally flattered the feelings of the
French people--"the interests of the empire," "the splendor of the
imperial throne." From him emanated all glory and power, and the whole
structure of the state, executive, judicial, and legislative, depended
upon his will. Freedom, in the eyes of the people, was succeeded by
glory, and the _éclat_ of victory was more highly prized than any
fictitious liberty. The _Code Napoléon_ rapidly progressed; schools of
science were improved; arts, manufactures, and agriculture revived.
Great monuments were reared to gratify the national pride and
perpetuate the glory of conquests. The dignity of the imperial throne
was splendidly maintained, and the utmost duties of etiquette were
observed. He encouraged amusements, festivities, and _fêtes_; and
Talma, the actor, as well as artists and scholars, received his
personal regard. But his reforms and his policy had reference chiefly
to the conversion of France into a nation of soldiers; and his system
of conscription secured him vast and disciplined armies, not animated,
as were the soldiers of the revolution, by the spirit of liberty, but
transformed into mechanical forces. The time was to come, in spite of
the military enthusiasm of his veteran soldiers, when it was to be
proved that the throne of absolutism is better sustained by love than
by mechanism.
[Sidenote: Aggrandizement of Napoleon's Family.]
Napoleon had already elevated his two brothers, Louis and Joseph, to
the thrones of Holland and Naples. He now sought to make his brother
Joseph the King of Spain. He availed himself of a quarrel between King
Charles and his son; acted as mediator, in the same sense that
Hastings and Clive acted as mediators in the quarrels of Indian
princes; and prepared to seize, not to humble, one of the oldest and
proudest monarchies of Europe.
The details of that long war on the Spanish peninsula, which resulted
from the appointment of Joseph Bonaparte to the throne of Spain, have
been most admirably traced by Napier, in the best military history
that has been written in modern times. The great hero of that war was
Wellington; and, though he fought under the greatest disadvantages and
against superior forces,--though unparalleled sufferings and miseries
ensued among all the belligerent forces,--still he succeeded in
turning the tide of French conquest.
Spain did not fall without a struggle. The Spanish Juntas adopted all
the means of defence in their power; and the immortal defence of
Saragossa, the capital of Arragon, should have taught the imperial
robber that the Spanish spirit, though degenerate, was not yet
extinguished.
It became almost the universal wish of the English to afford the
Spaniards every possible assistance in their honorable struggle, and
Sir Arthur Wellesley, the conqueror of the Mahrattas, landed in
Portugal in August, 1808. He was immediately opposed by Marshal Junot.
Napoleon could not be spared to defend in person the throne of his
brother, but his most illustrious marshals were sent into the field;
and, shortly after, the battle of Corunna was fought, at which Sir
John Moore, one of the bravest of generals, was killed in the moment
of victory.
[Sidenote: The Peninsular War.]
Long and disastrous was that Peninsular war. Before it could be
closed, Napoleon was called to make new exertions. Austria had again
declared war, and the forces which she raised were gigantic. Five
hundred and fifty thousand men, in different armies, were put under
the command of the Archduke Charles. Napoleon advanced against him,
and was again successful, at Abensberg and at Eckmuhl. Again he
occupied Vienna; but its fall did not discourage the Austrians, who,
soon after, were marshalled against the French at Wagram, which
dreadful battle made Napoleon once more the conqueror of Austria. On
the 14th of November, 1809, he returned to Paris, and soon after made
the grand mistake of his life.
He resolved to divorce Josephine, whom he loved and respected; a woman
fully worthy of his love, and of the exalted position to which she was
raised. But she had no children, and Napoleon wanted an heir to the
universal empire which he sought to erect on the ruins of the ancient
monarchies of Europe. The dream of Charlemagne and of Charles V. was
his, also--the revival of the great Western Empire. Moreover, Napoleon
sought a domestic alliance with the proud family of the German
emperor. He sought, by this, to gratify his pride and strengthen his
throne. He perhaps also contemplated, with the Emperor of Austria for
his father and ally, the easy conquest of Russia. Alexander so
supposed. "His next task," said he, "will be to drive me back to my
forests."
The Empress Josephine heard of the intentions of Napoleon with
indescribable anguish, but submitted to his will; thus sacrificing her
happiness to what she was made to believe would advance the welfare of
her country and the interests of that heartless conqueror whom she
nevertheless loved with unparalleled devotion. On the 11th of March,
1810, the espousals of Napoleon and Maria Louisa were celebrated at
Vienna, the person of the former being represented by his favorite
Berthier. A few days afterwards she set out for France; and her
marriage, in a domestic point of view, was happy. Josephine had the
advantage over her in art and grace, but she was superior in the
charms of simplicity and modesty. "It is singular," says Sir Walter
Scott, "that the artificial character should have belonged to the
daughter of a West India planter; that, marked by nature and
simplicity, to a princess of the proudest court in Europe."
[Sidenote: War in Spain.]
Meanwhile, the war in Spain was prosecuted, and Napoleon was master of
its richest and most powerful provinces. Seventy-five thousand men in
Andalusia, under Soult; fifty thousand under Marmont, in Leon; sixty
thousand under Bessières, at Valladolid and Biscay; forty-five
thousand under Macdonald, at Gerona, to guard Catalonia; thirty
thousand under Suchet, twenty thousand under Joseph and Jourdan,
fifteen thousand under Régnier, besides many more thousand troops in
the various garrisons,--in all over three hundred thousand men,--held
Spain in military subjection. Against these immense forces, marshalled
under the greatest generals of France, Spain and her allies could
oppose only about ninety thousand men, for the most part ill
disciplined and equipped.
The vital point of resistance was to be found shut up within the walls
of Cadiz, which made a successful defence. But Tortosa, Tarragona,
Saguntum, and Valentia, after making most desperate resistance, fell.
But Wellington gained, on the other hand, the great battle of Albuera,
one of the bloodiest ever fought, and which had a great effect in
raising the spirits of his army and of the Spaniards. The tide of
French conquest was arrested, and the English learned from their
enemies those arts of war which had hitherto made Napoleon triumphant.
In the next campaign of 1812, new successes were obtained by
Wellington, and against almost overwhelming difficulties. He renewed
the siege of Badajoz, and carried this frontier fortress, which
enabled him now to act on the offensive, and to enter the Spanish
territories. The fall of Ciudad Rodrigo was attended with the same
important consequences. Wellington now aimed to reduce the French
force on the Peninsula, although vastly superior to his own. He had
only sixty thousand men; but, with this force, he invaded Spain,
defended by three hundred thousand. Salamanca was the first place of
consequence which fell: Marmont was totally defeated. Wellington
advanced to Madrid, which he entered the 12th of August, amid the
enthusiastic shouts of the Spanish population. Soult was obliged to
raise the siege of Cadiz, abandon Andalusia, and hasten to meet the
great English general, who had turned the tide of French aggression.
Wellington was compelled, of course, to retire before the immense
forces which were marching against him, and fell back to Salamanca,
and afterwards to Ciudad Rodrigo. The campaign, on the part of the
English, is memorable in the annals of successful war, and the French
power was effectually weakened, if it was not destroyed.
[Sidenote: Invasion of Russia.]
In the midst of these successes, Napoleon prepared for his disastrous
invasion of Russia; the most gigantic and most unfortunate expedition
in the whole history of war.
Napoleon was probably induced to invade Russia in order to keep up the
succession of victories. He felt that, to be secure, he must advance;
that, the moment he sought repose, his throne would begin to totter;
that nothing would sustain the enthusiasm of his countrymen but new
triumphs, commensurate with his greatness and fame. Some, however,
dissuaded him from the undertaking, not only because it was plainly
aggressive and unnecessary, but because it was impolitic. Three
hundred thousand men were fighting in Spain to establish his family on
the throne of the Bourbons, and the rest of Europe was watching his
course, with the intention of assailing him so soon as he should meet
with misfortunes.
But neither danger nor difficulty deterred Napoleon from the
commission of a gigantic crime, for which no reasonable apology could
be given, and which admits of no palliation. He made, however, a
fearful mistake, and his rapid downfall was the result. Providence
permitted him to humble the powers of Europe, but did not design that
he should be permanently aggrandized by their misfortunes.
The forces of all the countries he had subdued were marshalled with
the French in this dreadful expedition, and nothing but enthusiasm was
excited in all the dominions of the empire. The army of invasion
amounted to above five hundred thousand men, only two hundred thousand
of whom were native French. To oppose this enormous force, the
Russians collected about three hundred thousand men; but Napoleon felt
secure of victory.
On the banks of the Niemen he reviewed the principal corps of his
army, collected from so many countries, and for the support of which
they were obliged to contribute. On the 24th of June, he and his hosts
crossed the river; and never, probably, in the history of man, was
exhibited a more splendid and imposing scene.
The Russians retreated as the allied armies advanced; and, on the 28th
of June, Napoleon was at Wilna, where he foolishly remained seventeen
days--the greatest military blunder of his life. The Emperor Alexander
hastened to Moscow, collected his armaments, and issued proclamations
to his subjects, which excited them to the highest degree of
enthusiasm to defend their altars and their firesides.
[Sidenote: Battle of Smolensko.]
Both armies approached Smolensko about the 16th of July, and there was
fought the first great battle of the campaign. The town was taken, and
the Russians retreated towards Moscow. But before this first conflict
began, a considerable part of the army had perished from sickness and
fatigue. At Borodino, another bloody battle was fought, in which more
men were killed and wounded than in any battle which history records.
Napoleon, in this battle, did not exhibit his usual sagacity or
energy, being, perhaps, overwhelmed with anxiety and fatigue. His
dispirited and broken army continued the march to Moscow, which was
reached the 14th of September. The Sacred City of the Russians was
abandoned by the army, and three hundred thousand of the inhabitants
took to flight. Napoleon had scarcely entered the deserted capital,
and taken quarters in the ancient palace of the czars, before the city
was discovered to be on fire in several places; and even the Kremlin
itself was soon enveloped in flames. Who could have believed that the
Russians would have burnt their capital? Such an event surely never
entered into a Frenchman's head. The consternation and horrors of that
awful conflagration can never be described, or even conceived. Pillage
and murder could scarcely add to the universal wretchedness.
Execration, indignation, and vengeance filled the breasts of both the
conquerors and the conquered. But who were the conquerors? Alas! those
only, who witnessed the complicated miseries and awful destruction of
the retreating army, have answered.
[Sidenote: Retreat of the French.]
The retreat was the saddest tragedy ever acted by man, but rendered
inevitable after the burning of Moscow, for Napoleon could not have
advanced to St. Petersburg. For some time, he lingered in the vicinity
of Moscow, hoping for the submission of Russia. Alexander was too wise
to treat for peace, and Napoleon and his diminished army, loaded,
however, with the spoil of Moscow, commenced his retreat, in a hostile
and desolate country, harassed by the increasing troops of the enemy.
Soon, however, heavy frosts commenced, unusual even in Russia, and the
roads were strewed by thousands who perished from fatigue and cold.
The retreat became a rout; for order, amid general destruction and
despair, could no longer be preserved. The Cossacks, too, hung upon
the rear of the retreating army, and cut off thousands whom the
elements had spared. In less than a week, thirty thousand horses died,
and the famished troops preyed upon their remains. The efforts of
Napoleon proved in vain to procure provisions for the men, or forage
for the horses. Disasters thickened, and all abandoned themselves to
despair. Of all the awful scenes which appalled the heart, the passage
of the Beresina was the most dreadful. When the ice was dissolved in
the following spring, twelve thousand dead bodies were found upon the
shore. The shattered remnants of the Grand Army, after unparalleled
suffering, at length reached the bank of the Niemen. Not more than
twenty thousand of the vast host with which Napoleon passed Smolensko
left the Russian territory. Their course might be traced by the bones
which afterwards whitened the soil. But before the Polish territories
were reached, Napoleon had deserted his army, and bore to Paris
himself the first intelligence of his great disaster. One hundred and
twenty-five thousand of his troops had died in battle, one hundred and
ninety thousand had been taken prisoners, and one hundred and
thirty-two thousand had died of cold, fatigue and famine. Only eighty
thousand had escaped, of whom twenty-five thousand were Austrians and
eighteen thousand were Prussians. The annals of the world furnish no
example of so complete an overthrow of so vast an armament, or so
terrible a retribution to a vain-glorious nation.
This calamity proved the chief cause of Napoleon's overthrow. Had he
retained his forces to fight on the defensive, he would have been too
strong for his enemies; but, by his Russian campaign, he lost a great
part of his veteran troops, and the veneration of his countrymen.
His failure was immediately followed by the resurrection of Germany.
Both Austria and Prussia threw off the ignominious yoke he had
imposed, and united with Russia to secure their ancient liberties. The
enthusiasm of the Prussians was unbounded, and immense preparations
were made by all the allied powers for a new campaign. Napoleon
exerted all the energies, which had ever distinguished him, to rally
his exhausted countrymen, and a large numerical force was again
raised. But the troops were chiefly conscripts, young men, unable to
endure the fatigue which his former soldiers sustained, and no longer
inspired with their sentiments and ideas.
[Sidenote: Battles of Lutzen and Bautzen.]
The campaign of 1813 was opened in Germany, signalized by the battles
of Lutzen and Bautzen, in which the French had the advantage. Saxony
still remained true to Napoleon, and he established his head-quarters
in Dresden. The allies retreated, but only to prepare for more
vigorous operations. England nobly assisted, and immense supplies were
sent to the mouth of the Elbe, and distributed immediately through
Germany. While these preparations were going on, the battle of
Vittoria, in Spain, was fought, which gave a death blow to French
power in the Peninsula, and placed Wellington in the front rank of
generals. Napoleon was now more than ever compelled to act on the
defensive, which does not suit the genius of the French character, and
he resolved to make the Elbe the base of his defensive operations. His
armies, along this line, amounted to the prodigious number of four
hundred thousand men; and Dresden, the head-quarters of Napoleon,
presented a scene of unparalleled gayety and splendor, of
licentiousness, extravagance, and folly. But Napoleon was opposed by
equally powerful forces, under Marshal Blucher, the Prussian general,
a veteran seventy years of age, and Prince Schwartzenberg, who
commanded the Austrians. But these immense armies composed not one
half of the forces arrayed in desperate antagonism. Nine hundred
thousand men in arms encircled the French empire, which was defended
by seven hundred thousand.
[Sidenote: Battle of Leipsic.]
The allied forces marched upon Dresden, and a dreadful battle was
fought, on the 27th of August, beneath its walls, which resulted in
the retreat of the allies, and in the death of General Moreau, who
fought against his old commander. But Napoleon was unable to remain
long in that elegant capital, having exhausted his provisions and
forage, and was obliged to retreat. On the 15th of October was fought
the celebrated battle of Leipsic, in which a greater number of men
were engaged than in any previous battle during the war, or probably
in the history of Europe--two hundred and thirty thousand against one
hundred and sixty thousand. The triumph of the allies was complete.
Napoleon was overpowered by the overwhelming coalition of his enemies.
He had nothing to do, after his great discomfiture, but to retreat to
France, and place the kingdom in the best defence in his power.
Misfortunes thickened in every quarter; and, at the close of the
campaign, France retained but a few fortresses beyond the Rhine. The
contest in Germany was over, and French domination in that country was
at an end. Out of four hundred thousand men, only eighty thousand
recrossed the Rhine. So great were the consequences of the battle of
Leipsic, in which the genius of Napoleon was exhibited as in former
times, but which availed nothing against vastly superior forces. A
grand alliance of all the powers of Europe was now arrayed against
Napoleon--from the rock of Gibraltar to the shores of Archangel; from
the banks of the Scheldt to the margin of the Bosphorus; the mightiest
confederation ever known, but indispensably necessary. The greatness
of Napoleon is seen in his indomitable will in resisting this
confederation, when his allies had deserted him, and when his own
subjects were no longer inclined to rally around his standard. He
still held out, even when over a million of men, from the different
states that he had humbled, were rapidly hemming him round and
advancing to his capital. Only three hundred and fifty thousand men
nominally remained to defend his frontiers, while his real effective
army amounted to little over one hundred thousand men. A million of
his soldiers in eighteen months had perished, and where was he to look
for recruits?
[Sidenote: The Allied Powers Invade France.]
On the 31st of December, 1814, fourteen hundred and seven years after
the Suevi, Vandals, and Burgundians crossed the Rhine and entered
without opposition the defenceless provinces of Gaul, the united
Prussians, Austrians, and Russians crossed the same river, and invaded
the territories of the modern Cæsar. They rapidly advanced towards
Paris, and Napoleon went forth from his capital to meet them. His
cause, however, was now desperate: but he made great exertions, and
displayed consummate abilities, so that the forces of his enemies were
for a time kept at bay. Battles were fought and won by both sides,
without decisive results. Slowly, but surely, the allied armies
advanced, and gradually surrounded him. By the 30th of March, they
were encamped on the heights of Montmartre; and Paris, defenceless and
miserable, surrendered to the conquerors. They now refused to treat
with Napoleon, who, a month before, at the conference of Chatillon,
might have retained his throne, if he had consented to reign over the
territories of France as they were before the Revolution. Napoleon
retired to Fontainebleau; and, on the 4th of April, he consented to
abdicate the throne he no longer could defend. His wife returned to
her father's protection, and nearly every person of note or
consideration abandoned him. On the 11th, he formally abdicated, and
the house of Bourbon was restored. He himself retired to the Island of
Elba, but was allowed two million five hundred thousand francs a year,
the title of emperor, and four hundred soldiers as his body guard. His
farewell address to the soldiers of his old guard, at Fontainebleau,
was pathetic and eloquent. They retained their attachment amid general
desertion and baseness.
Josephine did not long survive the fall of the hero she had loved, and
with whose fortunes her own were mysteriously united. She died on the
28th, and her last hours were soothed by the presence of the Emperor
Alexander, who promised to take her children under his protection. Of
all the great monarchs of his age, he was the most extensively beloved
and the most profoundly respected.
[Sidenote: Peace of Paris.]
The allies showed great magnanimity and moderation after their
victory. The monarchy of France was established nearly as it was
before the Revolution, and the capital was not rifled of any of its
monuments, curiosities, or treasures--not even of those which Napoleon
had brought from Italy. Nor was there a military contribution imposed
upon the people. The allies did not make war to destroy the kingdom
of France, but to dethrone a monarch who had proved himself to be
the enemy of mankind. The peace of Paris was signed by the
plenipotentiaries of France, Great Britain, Russia, Prussia, and
Austria, on the 30th of April; and Christendom, at last, indulged the
hope that the awful conflict had ended. The Revolution and its
offspring Napoleon were apparently suppressed, after more than three
millions of men had perished in the struggle on the part of France and
of her allies alone.
Great changes had taken place in the sentiments of all classes, since
the commencement of the contest, twenty years before, and its close
excited universal joy. In England, the enthusiasm was unparalleled,
and not easy to be conceived. The nation, in its gratitude to
Wellington, voted him four hundred thousand pounds, and the highest
military triumphs. It also conferred rewards and honors on his
principal generals; for his successful operations in Spain were no
slight cause of the overthrow of Napoleon.
But scarcely were these rejoicings terminated, before Napoleon escaped
from Elba, and again overturned the throne of the Bourbons. The
impolitic generosity and almost inconceivable rashness of the allies
had enabled Napoleon to carry on extensive intrigues in Paris, and to
collect a respectable force on the island of which he was constituted
the sovereign; while the unpopularity and impolitic measures of the
restored dynasty singularly favored any scheme which Napoleon might
have formed. The disbanding of an immense military force, the
humiliation of those veterans who still associated with the eagles of
Napoleon the glory of France, the derangement of the finances, and the
discontents of so many people thrown out of employment, naturally
prepared the way for the return of the hero of Marengo and Austerlitz.
[Sidenote: Napoleon's Return to France.]
On the 26th of February, he gave a brilliant ball to the principal
people of the island, and embarked the same evening, with eleven
hundred troops, to regain the sceptre which had been wrested from him
only by the united powers of Europe. On the 1st of March, his vessels
cast anchor in the Gulf of St. Juan, on the coast of Provence; and
Napoleon immediately commenced his march, having unfurled the
tricolored flag. As he anticipated he was welcomed by the people, and
the old cry of "_Vive l'Empereur_" saluted his ears.
The court of the Bourbons made vigorous preparations of resistance,
and the armies of France were intrusted to those marshals who owed
their elevation to Napoleon. Soult, Ney, Augereau, Massena, Oudinot,
all protested devotion to Louis XVIII.; and Ney promised the king
speedily to return to Paris with Napoleon in an iron cage. But Ney was
among the first to desert the cause of law and legitimacy, and threw
himself into the arms of the emperor. He could not withstand the arts
and the eloquence of that great hero for whose cause he had so long
fought. The defection of the whole army rapidly followed. The king was
obliged to fly, and Napoleon took possession of his throne, amid the
universal transports of the imperial party in France.
The intelligence of his restoration filled Europe with consternation,
rage, and disappointment, and greater preparations were made than ever
to subdue a man who respected neither treaties nor the interests of
his country. The unparalleled sum of one hundred and ten millions of
pounds sterling was decreed by the British senate for various
purposes, and all the continental powers made proportionate exertions.
The genius of Napoleon never blazed so brightly as in preparing for
his last desperate conflict with united Christendom; and, considering
the exhaustion of his country, the forces which he collected were
astonishing. Before the beginning of June, two hundred and twenty
thousand veteran soldiers were completely armed and equipped; a great
proof of the enthusiastic ardor which the people felt for Napoleon to
the last.
The Duke of Wellington had eighty thousand effective men under his
command, and Marshal Blucher one hundred and ten thousand. These
forces were to unite, and march to Paris through Flanders. It was
arranged that the Austrians and Russians should invade France first,
by Befort and Huningen, in order to attract the enemy's principal
forces to that quarter.
Napoleon's plan was to collect all his forces into one mass, and
boldly to place them between the English and Prussians, and attack
them separately. He had under his command one hundred and twenty
thousand veteran troops, and therefore, not unreasonably, expected to
combat successfully the one hundred and ninety thousand of the enemy.
He forgot, however, that he had to oppose Wellington and Blucher.
[Sidenote: Battle of Waterloo.]
On the 18th of June was performed the last sad act of the great
tragedy which had for twenty years convulsed Europe with blood and
tears. All the combatants on that eventful day understood the nature
of the contest, and the importance of the battle. At Waterloo,
Napoleon staked his last throw in the desperate game he had hazarded,
and lost it; and was ruined, irrevocably and forever.
Little signified his rapid flight, his attempt to defend Paris, or his
readiness to abdicate in favor of his son. The allied powers again, on
the 7th of July, entered Paris, and the Bourbon dynasty was restored.
Napoleon retired to Rochefort, hoping to escape his enemies and reach
America. It was impossible. He then resolved to throw himself upon the
generosity of the English. He was removed to St. Helena, where he no
longer stood a chance to become the scourge of the nations. And there,
on that lonely island, in the middle of the ocean, guarded most
effectually by his enemies, his schemes of conquest ended. He
supported his hopeless captivity with tolerable equanimity, showing no
signs of remorse for the injuries he had inflicted, but meditating
profoundly on the mistakes he had committed, and conjecturing vainly
on the course he might have adopted for the preservation of his power.
How idle were all his conjectures and meditations! His fall was
decreed in the councils of Heaven, and no mortal strength could have
prevented his overthrow. His mission of blood was ended; and his
nation, after its bitter humiliation, was again to enjoy repose. But
he did not live in vain. He lived as a messenger of divine vengeance
to chastise the objects of divine indignation. He lived to show to the
world what a splendid prize human energy could win; and yet to show
how vain, after all, was military glory, and how worthless is the
enjoyment of any victory purchased by the sufferings of mankind. He
lived to point the melancholy moral, that war, for its own sake, is a
delusion, a mockery, and a snare, and that the greater the elevation
to which unlawful ambition can raise a man, the greater will be his
subsequent humiliation; that "pride goeth before destruction, and a
haughty spirit before a fall."
[Sidenote: Reflections on Napoleon's Fall.]
The allied sovereigns of Europe insisted on the restoration of the
works of art which Napoleon had pillaged. "The bronzed horses, brought
from Corinth to Rome, again resumed their old station in the front of
the Church of St. Mark; the Transfiguration was restored to the
Vatican; the Apollo and the Laocoon again adorned St. Peter's; the
Venus was enshrined with new beauty at Florence; and the Descent from
the Cross was replaced in the Cathedral of Antwerp." By the treaty
which restored peace to Europe for a generation, the old dominions of
Austria, Prussia, Russia, Spain, Holland, and Italy were restored, and
the Bourbons again reigned over the ancient provinces of France.
Popular liberty on the continent of Europe was entombed, and the
dreams of revolutionists were unrealized; but suffering proved a
beneficial ordeal, and prepared the nations of Europe to appreciate,
more than ever, the benefits and blessings of peace.
* * * * *
REFERENCES.--The most complete work, on the whole, though
full of faults, and very heavy and prosaic, is Alison's
History of the French Revolution. Scott's Life of Napoleon
was too hastily written, and has many mistakes. No English
author has done full justice to Napoleon. Thiers's Histories
are invaluable. Napier's History of the Peninsula War is
masterly. Wellington's Despatches are indispensable only to
a student. Botta's History of Italy under Napoleon.
Dodsley's Annual Register. Labaume's Russian Campaign.
Southey's Peninsular War. Liborne's Waterloo Campaign.
Southey's Life of Nelson. Sherer's Life of the Duke of
Wellington. Gifford's Life of Pitt. Moore's Life of Sir John
Moore. James's Naval History. Memoirs of the Duchess
d'Abrantes. Berthier's Histoire de l'Expédition d'Égypte.
Schlosser's Modern History. The above works are the most
accessible, but form but a small part of those which have
appeared concerning the French Revolution and the career of
Napoleon. For a complete list of original authorities, see
the preface of Alison, and the references of Thiers.